The publication of this book is an event in the making. All over the world scientists, psychologists, and philosophers are waiting to read Antonio Damasio's new theory of the nature of consciousness and the construction of the self. A renowned and revered scientist and clinician, Damasio has spent decades following amnesiacs down hospital corridors, waiting for comatose patients to awaken, and devising ingenious research using PET scans to piece together the great puzzle of consciousness. In his bestselling Descartes' Error, Damasio (...) revealed the critical importance of emotion in the making of reason. Building on this foundation, he now shows how consciousness is created. Consciousness is the feeling of what happens-our mind noticing the body's reaction to the world and responding to that experience. Without our bodies there can be no consciousness, which is at heart a mechanism for survival that engages body, emotion, and mind in the glorious spiral of human life. A hymn to the possibilities of human existence, a magnificent work of ingenious science, a gorgeously written book, The Feeling of What Happens is already being hailed as a classic. (shrink)

This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity has a copyright on the body of the work. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and (...) made generally available to the public. To ensure a quality reading experience, this work has been proofread and republished using a format that seamlessly blends the original graphical elements with text in an easy-to-read typeface. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant. (shrink)

"The definitive work by B.K.S. Iyengar, the world's most respected yoga teacher. B.K.S. Iyengar has devoted his life to the practice and study of yoga. It was B.K.S. Iyengar's unique teaching style, bringing precision and clarity to the practice, as well as a mindset of 'yoga for all', which has made it into the worldwide phenomenon it is today. 'Light on Yoga' is widely called 'the bible of yoga' and has served as the source book for generations of yoga students (...) around the world. It is the classic text for all serious students of yoga." --Publisher description. (shrink)

Yoga is believed to have beneficial effects on cognition, attenuation of emotional intensity and stress reduction. Previous studies were mainly performed on eastern experienced practitioners or unhealthy subjects undergoing concomitant conventional therapies. Further investigation is needed on the effects of yoga per se, as well as its possible preventive benefits on healthy subjects. We investigated the effects of yoga on memory and psychophysiological parameters related to stress, comparing yoga practice and conventional physical exercises in healthy men . Memory tests, salivary (...) cortisol levels and stress, anxiety, and depression inventories were assessed before and after 6 months of practice. Yoga practitioners showed improvement of the memory performance, as well as improvements in psychophysiological parameters. The present results suggest that regular yoga practice can improve aspects of cognition and quality of life for healthy individuals. An indirect influence of emotional state on cognitive improvement promoted by yoga practice can be proposed. (shrink)

Nell’ambito della filosofia e delle scienze cognitive l’attenzione dedicata al problema dell’identità personale è stata rivolta quasi esclusivamente sul cervello. È nostra convinzione che questo abbia di conseguenza portato a trascurare il ruolo del corpo e dei movimenti corporei nel mondo, impoverendo la comprensione del modo in cui gli esseri viventi sviluppano il senso della loro identità. Esamineremo quindi l’importanza dell’avvertire i propri movimenti per lo sviluppo di un senso del sé di natura basilare e di carattere non-concettuale. Più in (...) dettaglio, noi sosteniamo che all’origine del senso del sé vi sia la capacità di avvertire la propria motilità spontanea. È a partire da questo elemento che l’organismo giunge a sviluppare un senso del “mi muovo” e, infine, del “posso muovermi”. La propriocezione e le cinestesi sono elementi essenziali in questa dinamica. Al contempo, sulla scia di Gibson, noi pensiamo che la percezione del sé e dell’ambiente procedano inevitabilmente di pari passo, diversamente da quanto sostiene la tradizionale dicotomia tra i cosiddetti sensi interni ed esterni. Prenderemo in esame una distinzione tradizionale tra due aspetti del sé corporeo: il senso del proprio corpo e l’immagine del proprio corpo. A nostro avviso questi due aspetti colgono elementi differenti del senso del sé e sosterremo nello specifico che il senso del proprio corpo svolge un ruolo di fondamentale importanza per il nostro senso del sé di carattere non-concettuale. Tenteremo infine di indicare alcune conseguenze di questa posizione per la ricerca nel campo delle scienze cognitive, in particolare nel campo della robotica, esaminando un caso di assenza di propriocezione, nella convinzione che questo costituisca un passo in avanti nella comprensione del modo in cui gli esseri viventi agiscono nel mondo, ossia grazie al possesso del senso del sé. (shrink)

The seminal treatise and guide to Ashtanga yoga by the master of this increasingly popular discipline There is a yoga boom in America, and Sri K. Pattabhi Jois is at the heart of it. One of the great yoga figures of our time, Jois brought Ashtanga yoga to the West a quarter of a century ago and has been the driving force behind its worldwide dissemination. Based on flowing, energetic movement, Ashtanga and the many forms of vinyasa yoga that grow (...) directly out of it--have become the most widespread and influential styles of practice in the United States today. Mala means "garland" in Sanskrit, and Yoga Mala--a "garland of yoga practice"--is Jois's distillation of Ashtanga. He first outlines the ethical principles and philosophy underlying the discipline and explains its important terms and concepts. Next he guides the reader through Ashtanga's versions of the Sun Salutation and its subsequent sequence of forty-two asanas, or poses, precisely describing how to execute each position and what benefits each provides. Brought into English by Eddie Stern, a student of Jois's for twelve years and director of the Patanjali Yoga Shala in New York City, Yoga Mala will be an indispensable handbook for students and teachers of yoga for years to come. (shrink)